Notes and Editorial Reviews

These recordings include the last that Stokowski made. They are, without exception, fabulous–beyond amazing for an artist in his 90s, and Sony has done him proud. Each of the ten CDs is an “original jacket” edition, never mind the sometimes short playing times, packaged with a nicely designed and fully annotated booklet. The sonics are uniformly impressive for the dates (mid 60s to 70s); Stokowski basically never released a disc that wasn’t engineered to his specifications, weird that they sometimes were. The selection of works also offers a virtually perfect overview of his art.

You get his devotion to contemporary music (Ives’ Fourth Symphony, Robert Browning Overture, and someRead more choruses), his beloved Bach (three chorale prelude transcriptions plus Brandenburg Concerto No. 5), Romantic favorites (Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony, Brahms’ Second and Tragic Overture, Sibelius’ First and The Swan of Tuonela, Bizet’s Symphony in C), orchestral blockbusters (his sensational Bizet Carmen and L’Arlésienne Suites, Tchaikovsky’s Aurora’s Wedding, Falla’s El amor brujo, and Stoki’s own “synthesis” of love music from Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde–twenty six minutes of it, no less, played with orgasmic richness by the Philadelphia Orchestra).

There’s the legendary collaboration between Stokowski and Glenn Gould in Beethoven’s “Emperor” Concerto (Gould’s finest non-Bach concerto recording), and finally a delicious disc of popular transcriptions of everything from Chopin, to Rimsky-Korsakov, to Albeniz and Debussy. The orchestras range from The Philadelphia Orchestra, to Stokowski’s own American Symphony, to the London studio pick-up ensemble The National Philharmonic, and every one of them sounds exactly as Stokowski wants them to sound. It’s pointless to try to choose between them. This is what a great conductor can do.

Although the program is self-recommending, I do want to take a moment to explain, with some musical samples, just why these discs are so important and rewarding, and how they illustrate the difference between a true podium genius and today’s technically proficient but often terminally dull baton wavers. First, consider the “Dance of Terror” from Falla’s El amor brujo (with a surprisingly good Shirley Verrett). This is the idiosyncratic Stokowski at his best (first sound sample). He does some rescoring; there’s the wild, descending swoop of the violins as the dance reaches its climax, but just listen to the passion and frenetic energy he brings to the music, helped in no small measure by the prominent trumpets.

Now compare this to a very good reference recording: Ansermet’s on Decca (second sound sample). Ansermet knew the composer. He conducted the premiere of The Three-Cornered Hat, and his authority in this music is unquestioned. By itself, he delivers a committed performance, but compared to Stokowski he sounds almost dead (until the end, at least). This, after all, is supposed to be a “Dance of Terror,” isn’t it? There’s no doubt that Ansermet is more idiomatic in the sense of being faithful to the score, but when Stokowksi was “on” (and sometimes he could be merely perverse), he created his own “idiom” one work at a time. The ends justified the means–a dangerous road, and an unanswerable question of individual taste, but in the hands of a genius a thrilling ride.

Next, sample the opening of Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony (third sound sample). This was Stokowski’s last recording, made when he was 95. Perhaps it helped that he was practically old enough to have known Mendelssohn personally; this was music in Stokowski’s late Victorian blood. Remember, he conducted the first ever Brahms Symphony cycle, and while he could be demented in the German standard repertoire–witness for example his psychotic Brahms Third on Everest–in both the Brahms and Mendelssohn symphonies he has decided to focus on traditional music values. In the Italian Symphony, he finds the perfect tempo at the start to let those throbbing wind chords propel the soaring violins onwards–not too fast, but so beautifully phrased and truly singing. How different this is from the slick, speedy, superficiality that so often passes for brilliance today (and in Stokowski’s earlier years too, as historical recordings attest).

We could go on. Every disc in this set offers a testament to a conductor of inimitable style and personality. Today, most orchestras are much better than most conductors. The “maestros” get up, wave their hands about, and if things go well they take the credit whether they deserve it or not. It’s really not fair. With Stokowski, there’s never any doubt about who’s truly in charge. Mahler used to say that there are no poor orchestras, only poor conductors. This set proves him right.

Customer Reviews

Average Customer Review: ( 9 Customer Reviews )

Stoki Club members or Adventerous types onlyFebruary 22, 2015By owen ryan (lakewood, CA)See All My Reviews"Did Sinatra write ''Doing It My Way'' with Stokowski in mind? This set is not for those faint of heart having an idee fixe for music being rendered in a certain correct manner. There is something here to offend, delight or bore just about anyone. For modern music fans there is Ive's 4th Symphony. Stoki and Glenn Gould doing Ludwig's Emperor Concerto their way will offend or delight. A marvelous Bizet Carmen and L'Arlesienne suites by an energetic 94 year old conductor. Then there is a Sibelius First Symphony unlike any that you've ever heard before. Well, you get the idea. Play it safe and avoid this one or if you're feeling dangerous take an adventerous walk on the wild side and buy this bargain priced collection of politically incorrect bon bons. Do be aware that audio quality is variable. But for $1.70 per disc what have you got to lose?"Report Abuse

Interesting!February 10, 2015By M. Hovare (Sollentuna, Sweden)See All My Reviews"A very interesting set of cd:s. Leopold Stokowskis often personal way of creating music is sometimes very different to other conductors. That`s what make him unique. Recommended!"Report Abuse

The best of "The Master"February 3, 2015By T. Ellis III (North Kingstown, RI)See All My Reviews"The &quot;Philadelphia Sound&quot; still lives, in all its glory. Thanks to Sony 's careful transfer to digital format. Great work!! And a great price to boot! Thanks Arkiv"Report Abuse